Faris Badwan

Infobox musical artist
Name = Faris Badwan

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Img_capt = Badwan performing with The Horrors in Razzmatazz (Barcelona) in late 2006.
Landscape = Yes
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Faris Adam Badwan
Alias = Faris Rotter
Currently dating = single
Born = birth date and age|1986|9|21
Died =
Origin = England
Instrument = Vocals
Genre = Garage rock
Surf
Punk
Occupation =
Years_active = 2005 – present
Label = Loog
Stolen Transmission
Associated_acts = The Horrors, The Rotters
Notable_instruments = |

Faris Badwan (formerly known as Faris Rotter) is an English musician, best known for being the lead vocalist for the English garage rock band The Horrors. He is an avid Blackburn Rovers fan.

Early life

Badwan's father is a Palestinian neurosurgeon and his mother is English. He is a sufferer of acute obsessive-compulsive disorder, something which was later to inspire his lyrics (especially in songs such as 'Count in Fives' and 'Gloves'). In 1999, Badwan obtained a scholarship to the exclusive public boarding school Rugby School, where he met Horrors bassist Tomethy Furse. Continuing his education, he moved to London to study illustration at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 2004, eventually deferring from his studies to concentrate on his musical career with the band. Whilst at college he also worked part-time for Velvet Illusion in Camden market, and with Joshua Hayward as a computer-games tester for EA games.

Musical career

Badwan is best known as vocalist for The Horrors, a garage punk band formed in Southend-on-Sea in 2005. Badwan is notorious for his onstage activities, which have featured violence, the use of black paint to mark audience members, scaling anything available, and using items found in the stage area to antagonise the audience. He once broke his nose when Horrors guitarist Joshua Third accidentally hit him with his guitar headstock.

Prior to forming The Horrors, Faris took part in a pseudo-punk band, The Rotters, named after the novel The Rotters' Club by Jonathan Coe. The band formed in a hurry after a club offered them a gig, and featured Badwan on drums, Dylan "Rotter" Wigoder on vocals, "Robot"/"Comedy" Jess "Rotter" Meek on bass guitar, and Emily "Rotter" Watson (later of London band Boys of Brazil) on guitar. Although not in any way a serious drummer and unable to keep a steady beat, Badwan took up the instrument and played on the band's only single, the triple A-side "Japanese Punk". The Rotters have admitted they are not a serious outfit, wrote all their songs in a matter of hours and never practiced; the band are theoretically on hiatus rather than defunct, but a reunion seems unlikely.

Badwan also produced Hatcham Social's 2008 single "So So Happy Making", and is rumoured to be producing their forthcoming follow-up single.

Artwork

Faris Badwan's artwork has be published in issues of Vice Magazine, Up Music Magazine, and various other media outlets. It can also be found on the cover of the Hatcham Social singles "How Soon Was Then?" (Popgrooves) and "Till The Dawn/Penelope (Under My Hat)" (Waks Records), and on the cover of The Charlatans' latest album "You Cross My Path". The inlay of The Horrors' debut album 'Strange House' is made up of Badwan's artwork. It has been announced that Badwan would publish a book of illustrations in early 2008, although this has so far failed to materialise. His first art exhibition took place at the Bodhi Gallery in London's Brick Lane from October 12th-21st 2007 [ [http://www.nme.com/news/the-horrors/31641 The Horrors frontman announces exhibition] ] .

Personal life

Badwan dated British socialite and television presenter Peaches Geldof in 2008. He has been quoted saying he didn't know they had broken up until he picked up a newspaper and found she had married Maxwell Drummey. He has previously been romantically linked with Alexa Chung.

Notes